Hill Wants Access to Secret SIPRNet

Congress -- an outfit which consists of 535 folks in search of a sound bite and 24,000 staffers who support that goal -- wants access to the Defense Department's classified network, or also known as the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet).

Giving thousands access to the network could result in leaks that make the Gulf oil spill look like a drip. But it could happen due to language buried on page 372 of the 637-page report on the fiscal 2011 Defense authorization bill approved by the House Armed Services Committee.

The language would require the Defense Secretary to provide SIPERNet access to each congressional committee through a secure link on CAPNet, the fiber-optic network that serves the House and Senate.

The link, the bill says, would support "appropriate" classified communications between the Hill and the Pentagon. But I'm more than a bit concerned it will lead to decidedly inappropriate leaks of classified and sensitive information.

I can understand a need (maybe) for SIPRNet access by the Defense or Intelligence committees, but why (oh why) would the Standards of Official Conduct or Small Business committees need a connection to Defense's secret network, used to run wars, among other things.